The Claimant’s Guide to the Disability Insurance Interview
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Understanding the Disability Insurance Interview
What you’ll learn: Why the phone interview is a critical moment in your claim and how to use it to tell your complete, accurate story.
If you have a long-term disability (LTD) claim with a policy you purchased or receive through your employer, you will participate in a phone interview with an insurer representative (nurse case manager, claims analyst, or vocational specialist). While they may be cordial, their role is to gather information to evaluate your claim under the policy terms.
The Golden Rule: Treat every question as a chance to add context. The insurer wants to fit you in a box; your job is to show why you don’t fit.
This guide empowers you to tell your whole story—truthfully, without exaggeration or ambiguity—so the insurer grasps the real impact of your condition.
An Important Disclaimer About How to Use this Guide
The information in this guide is for educational purposes only. The author is not your lawyer, is not providing legal advice, and this guide does not create an attorney-client relationship. Every disability claim is unique—facts, medical conditions, and policy terms vary. Consult an experienced disability insurance attorney for advice tailored to your situation.
Part 1: Before the Call — Preparation Is Your Shield
What you’ll learn: How to control the timing, align your records, and build a symptom scale that quantifies your experience with clarity.
1. Schedule the Call, Don’t Rush It
If you’re called at a bad moment—pain flare-up or mental fog—it’s essential to reschedule.
What to say: “Thank you for calling. I’m not in a good place to talk right now due to my symptoms. Can we please schedule this for another time?”
Use responsibly: Rescheduling isn’t stalling; it demonstrates your condition’s unpredictability.
2. Review Your Documents
Read your LTD application, official job description, and recent doctor’s notes. Consistency between written records and verbal statements is vital for credibility.
3. Develop a 1–10 Symptom Scale (CRITICAL)
Vague words are your enemy. Create a numeric rating for each key symptom:
Physical: Pain (back, joint), dizziness, shortness of breath
Cognitive: Brain fog, memory issues, concentration trouble
Systemic: Fatigue, malaise
Pro-Tip: Reference a clinical pain scale (e.g., Wong-Baker FACES). A 4–5/10 is often described as “distressing and interferes with tasks”—an ideal baseline for illustrating disability.
4. Define Your “Good” & “Bad” Days
Use your scale to describe your functional reality:
Good Day (e.g., 3–4/10): What tasks can you do? For how long?
Bad Day (e.g., 7–8/10): What triggers and functional consequences occur?
Example (Chronic Pain): “On a ‘good day’ (4/10), I can sit for 30 minutes but couldn’t sustain a full workday. On a ‘bad day’ (7/10), I need a heating pad and must lie flat most of the day.”
5. Map Symptoms to Job Duties
For each symptom, note which essential job duty it reliably prevents you from performing. This link is critical for your claim.
Part 2: During the Call — Be the Narrator of Your Experience
What you’ll learn: How to expand beyond “yes/no,” use your scale, explain activity costs, and protect your credibility.
1. Seize the Opportunity
Don’t give rushed answers. If interrupted, politely say: “It’s important I explain the context so you have an accurate picture.”
2. Be Specific & Avoid Ambiguity
Instead of: “The new medication is helping my pain.”
Say: “The medication reduced my baseline pain from a 6/10 to a 4/10. However, even at a 4/10, I can only sit for 20 minutes and cannot lift more than 10 pounds—both required by my role.”
3. Explain the “Cost” of an Activity (The Push-Crash Cycle)
Every activity has a price. Explain that price.
The Marathon Analogy: A person can run a marathon, but the cost is immense pain and days of recovery. Their ability to do it once doesn’t mean they can do it every day as a job. Use this logic.
Example: “I was able to play with my child for 15 minutes, but the cost was severe spasms that evening, requiring extra medication and 24 hours of rest.”
Pro-Tip for Episodic Conditions: Highlight unpredictability and frequency. Ten unpredictable ‘bad days’ a month isn’t sustainable for any employer, regardless of how functional you are on good days.
4. Resist Finite Answers to Vague Questions
If asked “How much can you lift?” you can respond: “It depends on the context. Lifting one 5-pound bag once is different from repeating it for an hour. For me, that repetition is what triggers a flare-up.”
5. Explain Why You Have Good Days
If you’ve had several good days, explain the controlled environment: “I’ve had to avoid my main triggers—no driving, no long computer use—which are conditions I cannot replicate at work.”
Part 3: What Not to Do
What you’ll learn: The three biggest mistakes that can destroy credibility.
DO NOT Exaggerate:
Your credibility is everything. Insurers sometimes use surveillance and always check public social media. Be scrupulously honest about your abilities and limitations.
DO NOT Let Them Put Words in Your Mouth:
If they summarize your statement incorrectly, politely but firmly correct them. “Actually, that’s not quite right. To be more precise, what I meant was…”
DO NOT Complain:
Avoid complaining about the insurance company, your employer, or your doctors. Stay factual, calm, and focused on your condition and its functional impact.
Part 4: After the Call — Document Everything
What you’ll learn: How to create and preserve your own record to support your claim.
1. Take Immediate Notes
After the call, write down the date, time, interviewer’s name, questions asked, and your answers while the conversation is fresh in your mind.
2. Send a Proactive Follow-Up Email
This is a crucial step to control the narrative. Send a polite email summarizing the conversation in your own words. This creates a written record that you control.
Sample Follow-Up Email:
Subject: Following Up on Our Conversation - [Your Name], Claim #[Your Claim Number]
Hello [Interviewer’s Name],
Thank you for taking the time to speak with me today, [Date], at [Time]. To ensure my explanations were clear, I wanted to quickly summarize my understanding of our conversation for the record.
We discussed my primary limitations, including [mention 1-2 key symptoms, e.g., my screen intolerance due to migraines and my inability to sit for more than 20-30 minutes due to back pain]. I explained that even on a “good day,” which I rate as a 4/10 on my pain scale, these limitations prevent me from performing the duties of my job on a reliable and sustained basis.
If your understanding differs, please let me know. I appreciate you adding this letter to my claim file.
Sincerely, [Your Name]
3. Store Records Securely
Save all emails, transcripts, and notes in a dedicated digital folder or physical binder. This is your controlled claim file.
Frequently Asked Questions about the LTD Interview
Here are answers to some of the most common questions claimants have about the disability insurance interview process.
What is the biggest mistake people make in their LTD claim interview?
The single biggest mistake is providing simple answers without context. For example, to the question “Can you go grocery shopping?,” a simple “Yes” is damaging. A much stronger answer is, “I can sometimes go for about 15 minutes on a good day, but the store's lights worsen my headache, and the activity often forces me to rest for the rest of the day.” Always explain the limitations and consequences of any activity. A close second: exaggerating as a short hand for context. You may feel like you cannot sit, stand, or walk for any amount of time, but is that strictly true? Most often people don’t exaggerate to mislead, they do it because they think it gets the message across about how bad their symptoms are. This ends up impacting their credibility.
Should my lawyer be on the call for my LTD interview?
This is a critical strategic decision that you should discuss with your attorney beforehand. In many cases, having an attorney on the call can be beneficial as they can ensure the interviewer stays within appropriate bounds and object to improper questions. However, the best approach depends entirely on the specifics of your case. Always consult with your lawyer to decide on the right strategy for you.
How long does an LTD insurance interview usually last?
While there is no set time, most long-term disability interviews last anywhere from 30 minutes to over 90 minutes. The duration depends on the complexity of your claim and the interviewer’s style. The interviewer is likely following a script of questions they must follow to mark the interview as complete. It is wise to block out at least two hours of uninterrupted time in a quiet place so you do not feel rushed.
What should I do if I don’t know an answer during my disability interview?
It is perfectly acceptable—and highly recommended—to say “I don't know” or “I’m not sure, I would have to check my records for that.” Guessing or speculating can lead to dangerous inconsistencies in your claim file. Stating that you don’t know is an honest answer that protects your credibility. If the interviewer insists on an answer, that’s okay, you want to get them all the information they need, but you can insist on getting the time to look into the answer.
What happens after the LTD claim interview is over?
After the call, the interviewer will write an internal report summarizing the conversation. This report is added to your claim file and will be reviewed by the claims analyst, along with your medical records, as they move toward making a decision. This is why sending your own follow-up summary letter is so important. A final decision on your claim is not made immediately after the call and can often take several more weeks or months.
About the Author
Brent Dorian Brehm, Esq. is the Founder of Dorian Law and has over 19 years of experience representing claimants in ERISA, life, AD&D, and long‑term disability insurance disputes. Brent has successfully secured benefits for hundreds of clients wrongfully denied by their insurers. Serving clients in all fifty states, Brent is admitted in California and all of its federal courts. He is deeply passionate about guiding individuals through the complexities of the claims process and fiercely advocating to ensure they obtain the coverage and support they deserve.